Epsom Hospital is a
teaching hospital
A teaching hospital is a hospital or medical centre that provides medical education and training to future and current health professionals. Teaching hospitals are almost always affiliated with one or more universities and are often co-located ...
in
Epsom
Epsom is the principal town of the Borough of Epsom and Ewell in Surrey, England, about south of central London. The town is first recorded as ''Ebesham'' in the 10th century and its name probably derives from that of a Saxon landowner. The ...
,
Surrey
Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...
,
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. The hospital is situated on Dorking Road south east of the centre of Epsom. It is managed by the
Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust
Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust is an NHS trust covering the London Borough of Sutton and north Surrey. It runs two main hospitals: Epsom Hospital and St Helier Hospital. It also runs a chronic fatigue and pain clinic at Sutton ...
along with the nearby
St Helier Hospital
St Helier Hospital (full title: ''St Helier Hospital and Queen Mary's Hospital for Children'') in the London Borough of Sutton is run by St George's, Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals and Health Group along with Epsom Hospital. It is loc ...
.
History
The hospital has it origins in a cottage hospital which opened with just eight beds in 1873.
The current building opened as a workhouse infirmary in 1890. It was staffed by volunteers until it joined the
National Health Service
The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...
in 1948.
[
In 2011, it was revealed that the hospital was at risk of losing its accident and emergency services as part of a Better Services Better Value (BSBV) programme, which would rationalise hospital facilities across Surrey and south west London. In 2013, local MP ]Chris Grayling
Christopher Stephen Grayling (born 1 April 1962) is a British Conservative Party (UK), Conservative Party politician and author who served as Secretary of State for Transport from 2016 to 2019. He has served as Member of Parliament (United King ...
said that constituents should show their support for retaining these services at the hospital.
Epsom Hospital was in the news in August 2018 after a stray cat was found in a linen basket.
In 2019 part of the Dorking Road site was sold for £18 million to Legal & General
Legal & General Group plc, commonly known as Legal & General, is a British multinational financial services and asset management company headquartered in London, England. Its products and services include investment management, lifetime mortg ...
, which set up a partnership with specialist older persons housing provider Guild Living to create an residential complex.
Services
The hospital contains an accident and emergency
An emergency department (ED), also known as an accident and emergency department (A&E), emergency room (ER), emergency ward (EW) or casualty department, is a medical treatment facility specializing in emergency medicine, the Acute (medicine), ...
and a range of diagnostic and supporting services including pathology
Pathology is the study of the causes and effects of disease or injury. The word ''pathology'' also refers to the study of disease in general, incorporating a wide range of biology research fields and medical practices. However, when used in ...
, radiology
Radiology ( ) is the medical discipline that uses medical imaging to diagnose diseases and guide their treatment, within the bodies of humans and other animals. It began with radiography (which is why its name has a root referring to radiat ...
(including CT, MRI and ultrasound), the South West Elective Orthopaedic Centre (SWLEOC) which calls itself a "centre of excellence", vascular diagnostic services and an acute psychiatric facility operated by Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foundation Trust.
Radio station
The hospital has its own radio service, "Epsom Hospital Radio", which is a registered charity and is staffed by volunteers. Since 1979, its mascot has been Ruddles The Bear, which was named after a competition in the Epsom Guardian.
See also
*Epsom Cluster
The Epsom Cluster, also referred to as the Horton Estate, was a cluster or group of five large psychiatric hospitals situated on land to the west of Epsom.
The hospitals were built by the London County Council to alleviate pressure on London's e ...
, a group of psychiatric hospitals near Epsom
* List of hospitals in England
The following is a list of hospitals in England. For NHS trusts, see the list of NHS Trusts.
East Midlands
* Arnold Lodge, Leicestershire
*Babington Hospital – Belper, Derbyshire
*Bassetlaw District General Hospital – Worksop, Nottinghams ...
References
External links
Epsom Hospital Radio website
{{authority control
Hospitals in Surrey
NHS hospitals in England